Five Things To Do This Weekend in Memphis: July 22nd-24th

Mural artists at Crosstown Arts

Crosstown Arts, 430 N. Cleveland

Fri., July 22, 6-9 p.m.

Paint Memphis wants to introduce you to graffiti artists and muralists who have changed the way we think of art in public spaces. These artists will tell their stories and share insight to their work in preparation for their next event, Soul Food 5, a one-day festival in October that will bring over 100 artists to Memphis to paint the flood wall at N. Evergreen and Chelsea. Opening reception for "Fish" will also be hosted at Crosstown Arts this Friday. This site specific display will combine traditional audio, visual, and sculptural media with technology from the minds of Laura Jean Hocking, Sarah Fleming, and Christopher Reyes. If you have ever stumbled upon the work of these artists, you definitely know there is something wonderfully fishy going on in their minds. Grab your tackle and gear for a fishing trip like no other.

WEVL Blues on the Bluff

2016 posters available during Blues on the Bluff at the National Ornamental Metal Museum.

Metal Museum, 374 Metal Museum Dr.

Sat., July 23, 6 p.m.

WEVL FM 89.9 first aired on the radio in 1976. The 40th year for the radio station and the 28th year for the Blues on the Bluff fundraising event will feature The Maitre D’s, Bo-Keys, and Garry Burnside Band.

Good People Good Beer and Central BBQ benefiting Operation Broken Silence

Playhouse on the Square, 66 S. Cooper

Sat., July 23, 6 p.m.

Taste beer, eat food, and mingle with fellow philanthropists at this fundraising event for local non-profit Operation Broken Silence, a global movement with a radically different approach to fighting genocide in Sudan.

Black tie and sneakers at SportsBall

Minglewood Hall, 1555 Madison

Sat., July 23, 7 p.m.

This weekend is all about putting on your best tuxedo or ball gown and tennis shoes—yes, tennis shoes. These games for grown-ups secure futures for kids by benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Mid-South. For other fun sporting events this Saturday, meander down to Tom Lee Park for @901Volleyball Sand Volleyball Tournament and Renew Memphis 4 Mile Run. Game on!

I saw Jaws in the theater with my father, an uncle, and my oldest brother in June of 1975. My uncle argued with my father that us kids were too young to see it. Reluctantly, he entered the theater with us. Jaws suddenly thrashes through the surface of the water filling the screen with an image of a large head, beady eyes, teeth, and malice. The audience, as one entity, visibly rocked back in the seats like a wave produced by this enormous threat. My uncle walked out the theater at this point. He lived on an ocean and spent much of his time on the water fishing. It became clear that he didn’t think we were too young to see the movie —he didn’t want to see it. There was only one other time I can remember being so emotionally rocked by a film where an animal was the protagonist. Spoiler alert. Charlton Heston, the sole survivor of an astronaut crew, dismounts his horse, falls to the ground, and beats his fist on the sand at the realization that he was home, in the future, and that all mankind was destroyed. I will never forget the feeling of utter defeat and horror when the cameras roll back revealing the truth that Heston had only just discovered—Lady Liberty as a pile of twisted wire. In retrospect, the timing of this 1968 film couldn’t have been more appropriate. One year later, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin did indeed land on the moon. Fortunately, they returned to an intact Lady Liberty where humans are still superior to the apes—for now.

For a full list of what’s happening this weekend in and around Memphis, check out our calendar of events. Also, be sure to tag your favorite Instagram photos of Memphis while you are out and about with the #memphismagazine hashtag. I hope you have a great weekend.